EASTON, Pa. – The Easton Area school board learned at its committee meeting Tuesday night that it will be asked to vote on an Act 34 public hearing at its voting meeting next week.
An Act 34 hearing is a state-mandated public hearing on a new building project.
Easton Area School District is looking at building a 457,000-square-foot high school, which is projected to cost $298 million, on the campus of the current high school.
It is anticipated to be a multiple year project with groundbreaking expected in May 2027 and completion in July 2031.
The Act 34 hearing requires that the district disclose the maximum project cost and a full description of the project.
The hearing has been scheduled for Jan. 20 at 6 p.m. in the district board room.
The draft resolution for the hearing states that the bidding process for the project will take place from Feb. 23 through April 14.
Grant application
On the same topic, Josh Ziatyk, assistant superintendent for district operations and services, said the board will also be asked to approve a resolution to allow CHA to act on behalf of the district to seek a grant for the high school project from the state’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program.
CHA is the engineering and design consultant for the project.
Ziatyk said CHA will be seeking a $25 million grant and will be paid a fee of 10% of the grant amount, with a cap of $500,000.
Ziatyk also explained that CHA would not receive any payment if the grant application is not successful but would charge $50,000 if the district is awarded a grant but fails to use the funds for the intended project.